Director Wang's enthusiasm made Zhang Guan a little unbearable. Zhang Guan remembered that when he first met Director Wang at the Sports Federation, the other person had a cold eyebrow, but now Director Wang smiled like an Amitabha Buddha.
"It's really realistic!" Zhang Guan sighed. Not long ago, the Winter Sports Center regarded itself as the biggest trouble, but now, it seems that he has become the savior of the Winter Sports Center. At least among the short track speed skating team, Zhang Guan enjoys the top treatment. Zhang Guan even He felt that he was a bigger star than before when he was on the track and field team. This contrast even made it difficult for Zhang Guan to adapt to it for a while.
Compared with track and field sports, winter sports are indeed much weaker. There are fewer competitions in winter sports, and there are fewer opportunities for athletes to show their faces, so winter sports can only be regarded as a "small temple." But now there is a "big Buddha" like Zhang Guan in the "small temple". It is still a big Buddha that can attract pilgrims to worship. The monks in the temple naturally worship it carefully.
At the end of the year and the beginning of the year, the number of sports competitions, both domestically and internationally, is much smaller. Especially in NBA games, due to Yao's injury and absence, the attention has been reduced a lot.
As the Vancouver Winter Olympics approaches, the Winter Sports Center has also announced the list of participants for the Winter Olympics. Short track speed skating is the strength of the national team and a hot spot for gold medals, so it has attracted much attention. Therefore, Zhang Guan's name immediately came into people's eyes.
Zhang Guan will participate in the Vancouver Winter Olympics!
This news instantly grabbed the headlines of domestic media.
It is nothing new for an athlete to participate in both the Summer and Winter Olympics. There have been many "summer and winter amphibious" athletes in history. In fact, the Summer Olympics are more professional than the Winter Olympics. Athletes who can participate in the Summer Olympics are all people with extraordinary physical conditions. With their physical talents, they are even more capable if they engage in winter sports.
Because of Zhang Guan's participation, the Vancouver Winter Olympics, which originally did not attract much attention, has entered people's attention.
…
The Vancouver Winter Olympics officially begins on February 13, local time. A total of 85 countries and regions participated in this Winter Olympics, which is much less than the Summer Olympics, but compared with the previous Turin Winter Olympics, there were more participating countries and participating athletes.
Around the world, the Winter Olympics is receiving more and more attention. In the 1980s and 1990s, only more than 40 countries participated in a Winter Olympics, but now there are 85 countries participating, which is more than 20 It doubled a year ago.
There are also differences between the Winter Olympics and the Summer Olympics in terms of competition schedules. One event in the Summer Olympics is often held consecutively. For example, after the table tennis project started, there will be table tennis competitions every day, including men's and women's singles, men's and women's doubles, team competitions, etc., which will be completed within a few days. However, many competition events in the Vancouver Winter Olympics are separated. Take short track speed skating as an example. It will start on February 14th. The next competition day will not be until February 18th four days later. There will be no activity at all in the middle three days. Short track speed skating competition. The entire short track speed skating event lasted for two weeks from February 14th to February 27th. In fact, there were only five competition days, and the other nine days were rested.
February 14th is the first competition day for short track speed skating. This day will also produce the first gold medal in short track speed skating at this Winter Olympics, which is the men’s 1500-meter event.
…
Men's 1500m group stage, semi-finals and finals, among which the group stage will be the first competition of short track speed skating.
In this event, the national team sent three players to compete. In addition to Zhang Guan, the other two players were Liu Xianwei and Song Weilong.
In the men's short track speed skating event, the national team is not weak, but there is still a gap between medals. It is a great achievement for the national team's athletes to enter the finals.
In this event, the Korean team has absolute dominance. For example, in the 1,500-meter finals, usually only Brother Li has a quota, and the Korean team has to occupy three, which means half of them are Koreans. In the 500-meter final, there are only four places in total, and the Korean team is also able to occupy three, which is equivalent to three Korean athletes surrounding one athlete from other countries.
In the 1500-meter preliminaries that started first, Zhang Guan easily advanced to the semi-finals as the first in the group, while the other two teammates, Liu Xianwei, advanced to the third place in the group, while Song Weilong performed poorly and was stopped in the first round.
The athletes rested for an hour before ushering in the 1,500-meter semifinals. Liu Xianwei, who was the first to appear, adopted a proactive tactic of leading the team, but in the end he was still weak and ranked fifth in the group and missed the finals.
Zhang Guan appeared in the third group. In addition to Zhang Guan, there are Canadian player Oliver, American player Apollo and the world's number one Korean player Lee Jung-soo. This group is also called the group of death.
Lee Jung-soo is South Korea's first brother in 1500-meter short track speed skating and is also the world's number one in this event. He is extremely strong; Canada's Oliver is the weekly champion of 1500-meter short track speed skating, and American player Apollo is the top athlete in this event. The three most powerful athletes on the American team all have the ability to enter the finals. Plus Zhang Guan, this group is equivalent to two out of four.
Public opinion before the game generally believed that Lee Jung-soo and Oliver would be able to advance. After all, their strength is there, and Zhang Guan is obviously the biggest unknown factor in this group.
Oliver is playing locally, and he is obviously determined to win this finals spot. However, the final result disappointed the home audience. Oliver had an accident midway through the game and fell off the track. In the end, Zhang Guan and Lee Jung-soo advanced to the finals.
All six finalists were also born. The South Korean trio Lee Jung-soo, Lee Ho-suk and Sung Si-baek all obtained final places. American player Selsky, Canadian player Hamelin and Zhang Guan shared the other three final places. .
…
Just an hour and a half after Zhang Guan's 1,500-meter short track speed skating debut, he had already appeared in the finals. Many viewers watching the Winter Olympics for the first time even felt a little unable to adapt to this fast-paced schedule. .
Choi Guangbo, the head coach of South Korea's short track speed skating, called his three players closer and said: "There is nothing to be afraid of, either Selsky of the U.S. team or Hamelin of Canada. Both of them scored 2:16. Seconds aside, what I'm most worried about right now is Zhang Guan. His time in the group stage has slipped to 2 minutes and 16 seconds, and his time in the semi-finals has improved to 2 minutes and 15 seconds. This time can already compete with yours. I have said that before I was worried that Zhang Guan would become the biggest variable in today’s game, and now it seems that my worries have come true.”
"Coach, don't worry, we will do our best!" the top player Li Zhengzhu said.
"It is not enough to go all out. My goal is to win the championship, second and third place. This time we did not let Ahn Hyun-soo compete. Both he himself and the people in the country criticized this decision, so you must Winning the top three will tell our people that even without Ahn Hyun-soo, we can still dominate the 1,500-meter short track speed skating competition!" Cui Guangfu paused and then said: "When we compete for a while, according to our The previously established tactics, Lee Jung-soo leads the skate, Lee Ho-suk and Sung Si-baek, the two of you are responsible for blocking the position, preventing the athletes behind from overtaking, so that Lee Jung-soo can run at his own pace! Remember, we are a team, we need It’s teamwork!”
…
At the same time, coach Li Bing also called Zhang Guan closer.
"Ahn Hyun-soo did not participate this time. I heard that he is currently having conflicts with the Korean national team. South Korea's leader is Lee Jung-soo. I guess coach Cui Guangbo will still let Lee Jung-soo lead the skates in the front, while Lee Ho-suk and Sung Si-baek will The individual is responsible for covering Lee Jung-soo, preventing other athletes from overtaking, and at the same time disrupting the rhythm of others. Therefore, you must control your own rhythm during the game. Once the rhythm is disrupted, there will be physical problems in the second half of the race. If possible, try not to be blocked by Lee Ho-seok and Sung Si-baek, and if possible, try to pass them as much as possible."
"Ahn Hyun-soo is the world record holder in the 1,500 meters. He should only be in his mid-twenties, which is considered the peak age of professional athletes. It would be a pity if he doesn't come." Zhang Guan sighed.
"The conflict between Ahn Hyun-soo and the Korean national team has become public. I heard that the Korean national team did not pay a penny for the treatment of his injury last time, leaving Ahn Hyun-soo to pay for it at his own expense. And this time, the selection of athletes can be changed. Standard, a points system was established, which directly blocked Ahn Hyun-soo from the Winter Olympics." Coach Li Bing sighed and said with regret: "Such a talented athlete was given up by the Koreans like this. It’s such a shame that it’s been scrapped.”
"Abolish it? No way. He can change his nationality. Maybe he will represent another country in the next Winter Olympics." Zhang Guan said with a smile.
As the world record holder in 1,500-meter short track speed skating, Ahn Hyun-soo was once a hero to Koreans, but now he is in a state of being hidden by the Korean national team. In order to prevent Ahn Hyun-soo from participating, the Korean Ice Hockey Federation even played a dirty trick and set the trial time in September. At that time, Ahn Hyun-soo happened to be participating in military training for military service and had to miss the game.
Zhang Guan also knew that the frustrated Ahn Hyun-soo finally defected to Russia, and the Russian president personally signed a presidential decree granting Ahn Hyun-soo Russian citizenship. At the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, Ahn Hyun-soo, as the absolute main force of the Russian team, won Russia's first short track speed skating gold medal in history, and even led Russia to break the short track speed skating relay world record. It can be said that Ahn Hyun-soo not only went to Russia, but also brought the concepts and training methods of Korean short track speed skating to Russia, which made Russia become the world's best in short track speed skating from the fifth scumbag. Strong team.
…
All six skaters have already stood on the starting line. The three Korean skaters are wearing dark blue skating suits, the Americans are wearing light blue tops, and Zhang Guan and the Canadian skaters are all wearing red. At first glance, Somewhat difficult to distinguish.
The referee said "get ready", and the six players made a skating posture. The audience was all quiet now, and then the gunshot rang out, and the six players started to move at the same time.
After the first corner, the Canadian player successfully grabbed the first position with the cheers of the home audience. The three Korean players followed closely behind, with Lee Jung-soo in front and the other two behind. There is a "pin" shape, Zhang Guan and the American player are the last two.
The Canadian skater leading the skating in front looked like he was in the lead, but in fact, life was not easy. The three Korean skaters behind him were all stronger than him. In this situation where the weakest skater was leading the skating, not only was he unable to skate out, The normal rhythm will be oppressed by the Korean players behind.
So after just one lap, the Canadian player gave up his leading position, and the following players took advantage of the trend to overtake, and the Canadian player who was at the front instantly fell to the last position.
"Good job!" Coach Cui Guangfu clenched his fists fiercely. The three Korean players were already in the leading position, just like what coach Cui Guangfu planned.
Lee Kwang-soo, the leader, began to enter his own rhythm, while Lee Ho-suk and Sung Si-baek began to interfere with the rhythm of other athletes. After only two laps, Lee Kwang-soo opened a certain distance from the players behind him.
"Sure enough, as coach Li Bing expected, Lee Kwang-soo is in front, and Lee Ho-suk and Sung Si-baek are blocking the back. I have to pass as quickly as possible." Zhang Guan looked at the front and found that Li Ho-suk and Sung Si-baek were guarding the line. It's very deadly. If you want to overtake, you have to be in a relatively outside position.
"The outside is the outside!" Zhang Guan accelerated and rushed forward.
…
"Zhang Guan passed two Korean players and followed Lee Kwang Soo!"
This overtaking caused a burst of cheers and applause at the scene. Obviously the audience wanted to see a wonderful competition between you and me, rather than the three Korean team leading the skate to the end.
Coach Cui Guangfu curled his lips disdainfully. The kind of overtaking that Zhang Guan used just now must be very physically demanding. In the 1500-meter race, physical strength is a very important factor, especially in the last 500 meters. There is only enough energy. Only with physical strength can you ensure that you don't fall off the chain.
Li Guangzhu also noticed someone chasing behind him.
"The red sportswear is not Canadian, it's Zhang Guan! I didn't expect him to catch up. That's fine, let's see if you can keep up with my pace!" Li Guangzhu couldn't help but speed up.
As the world's number one 1,500-meter short track speed skater, Lee Kwang-soo's speed does have an advantage, especially in the second half of the race, when everyone else's physical strength is declining, he can still maintain a relatively fast speed. This is also where the Korean team has its advantage.
"Too slow!" Zhang Guan, who was behind, felt that Lee Kwang-soo's pace was still half a beat slower than his own fastest speed.
"Although Lee Kwang Soo is currently the number one in the world, his speed is still slightly behind the world record. I'd better lead the skate by myself. Following him will affect my rhythm."
Zhang Guan thought of this and tried to surpass Li Guangzhu.
"You want to overtake me? No way! How could I let you overtake me?" Li Guangzhu saw Zhang Guan running to the outside out of the corner of his eye. He knew that Zhang Guan was preparing to overtake, so he also increased his speed. He wanted to stop Zhang Guan.
"Jang Guan is about to overtake Lee Kwang Soo, and Lee Kwang Soo is also speeding up! The two are almost neck and neck!" The commentator shouted, and the scene also shouted again.
But Zhang Guan's overtaking was not successful. There was a curve in front of him, and Lee Kwang Soo was on the inside. The distance he moved was shorter. Zhang Guan was unable to overtake Lee Kwang Soo at this stage.
At the end of the straight, Zhang Guan made his second attempt to overtake Lee Kwang-soo, and Lee Kwang-soo defended again.
…
On the track, Zhang Guan and Lee Kwang-soo were still fighting, but their fighting did not affect their speed. Zhang Guan needed faster speed to surpass Lee Kwang-soo, and Lee Kwang-soo also needed faster speed to defend Zhang Guan. The two of them refused to give up, which made the two of them faster and faster.
Coach Cui Guangfu looked at the timer, and there was a slight unnaturalness on his expression.
"Lee Kwang-soo skated too fast. It was at least three seconds faster than usual. With such a fast speed, can he have the physical strength to keep up?"
Coach Cui Guangfu began to worry about Li Guangzhu's physical strength, but he also knew that the reason why Li Guangzhu skated so fast today was because Zhang Guan behind him was pressing too hard.
If the person skating in the lead is faster, the people behind him will also speed up involuntarily, so whether it is Li Haoxi or Cheng Sibai, their speed is faster than usual, but this consumes more of their physical strength.
This is like a middle-distance running competition. The person in the lead is faster. If the people behind are not strong enough and forcefully keep up, they will consume more energy and may even be unable to complete the race.
This was the situation in today's competition. Especially after ten laps, the gap between the athletes gradually widened, and the compact formation at the start was long gone.
"As expected of Lee Kwang Soo, who is considered a 'genius' player. He is still able to maintain such a fast speed at this time. I have been following him, but I have begun to lose my ability!" Sung Sibai behind him thought to himself. He slowed down slightly, adjusted his rhythm, and prepared to accumulate energy for the final sprint of one and a half laps.
However, at this time, Lee Kwang-soo was actually riding a tiger with difficulty.
"I'm so tired. I feel like I'm running out of energy! That Zhang Guan, why are you still chasing him so closely!" Li Guangzhu gritted his teeth and persisted.
In fact, at this time, Li Guangzhu did not dare to slow down at all. He had to maintain his speed. Once his speed slowed down, Zhang Guan would pass him. At the same time, Li Guangzhu felt that Zhang Guan's physical strength was definitely running low, and Zhang Guan was also trying to hold on, so as long as he persisted until the moment Zhang Guan couldn't hold on any longer, victory would be his.
This belief allows Lee Kwang-soo to still maintain high-speed skating. He feels that the current game is not only a competition of speed, but also a competition of willpower.
However, Zhang Guan was also quite surprised.
"I underestimated Lee Kwang Soo before. His speed is quite fast. He has been blocking me in front of me for so many laps, preventing me from passing him. Korean short track speed skating is indeed the best in the world! It seems that it depends on It’s the last lap and a half of sprinting to decide the winner!”
Thinking of this, Zhang Guan also began to adjust his rhythm in preparation for the final sprint.
On the 10th lap, Lee Kwang-soo gritted his teeth.
On the 11th lap, Lee Kwang-soo still persisted.
On lap 12, we are about to enter the final sprint.
"Final sprint, fight hard!"
The moment he crossed the finish line, Zhang Guan accelerated his pace. On the next straight, he was obviously faster than Lee Kwang-soo. When he entered the straight, he quickly distanced himself from Lee Kwang-soo.
Li Guangzhu felt the figure in front of him flicker, and the next moment, he saw Zhang Guan sliding in front of him.
"Sprint? By the way, it's time for the final sprint!" Li Guangzhu also wanted to sprint, but his body was not obeying the command. He no longer had any extra energy to sprint.
"I can't rush anymore!" Li Guangzhu raised his head, and in his sight, the red figure gradually faded away.
…
"Zhang Guan! Passed!"
On the sidelines of the game, the stands where the national team was sitting were filled with jubilation, and coach Li Bing couldn't stop shouting loudly. At this moment, he himself didn't know what he was shouting. He just simply felt that he Shout it loudly.
Next to him, coach Cui Guangfu was no longer calm either. He stared straight at the field, unable to believe what he was seeing.
Finally, Zhang Guan crossed the finish line first.
The time is fixed at 2 minutes, 08 seconds and 021 seconds!
Breaking the record and winning the championship!
Another record-breaking win!
It’s still the familiar Zhang Guan, it’s still the familiar record-breaking championship!
This chapter is close to 6,000 words, so it can be considered a two-in-one chapter. I would like to report to you that I started writing this chapter last night and wrote a total of more than 12,000 words. After reading it through, I felt it was a bit delayed, so I deleted it and finally deleted it to these 6,000 words. Originally, all the outstanding chapters had been made up, but with this deletion, I would still be owed two more days.
(End of chapter)